Patriotism

Lately I've been working at baseball games.

My daughter is in high school band, and one of the ways we an raise money to pay for our kids' band fees is to work shifts in the concession stands at our local minor league baseball team's games. Every night we serve customers from the time the gate opens until the time the national anthem begins. When the anthem plays, everyone in the stadium gets quiet and turns to face the flag. The stand stills, and we all take off our ball caps and put them over our hearts. It's an amazing moment every night - even the most unruly guest seems fully prepared to pay respect to the American flag.

I have respect for the flag, and I would be remiss, blogging on Memorial Day, to not mention the sacrifice of lives that our service men and women make every single day. Stick with me until the end of this blog post, because I'm not taking away from that at all. But I've always had a nagging doubt, or worry, or hangup, or whatever you call it, at what almost appears to be worship of a red, white, and blue idol. When we sing of our love for our country, when we pledge our allegiance to it as represented by the flag, are we putting it above God?

In 1954, when the words "under God" were added to the Pledge of Allegiance, it wasn't because of religious fervor - it was because Congress was afraid of communism. But I think it does add something useful for a Christian. Our country (and your country, too, if you don't live in the United States) should have our full support and allegiance - as long as it does not counter the Word of God. If there ever becomes a time when the United States places itself into direct opposition against God, that is the point where my allegiance ends. But not before!

It occurred to me the other night, as my baseball cap was hovering over my heart, that patriotism to a country that has not set itself against God, is in itself a Godly thing. The reason patriotism aligns directly with faith is that true faith in God values and cherishes people, as the God of the Bible cherished people enough to send His Son to die to save them. On Memorial Day, and every time we pledge allegiance to the United States flag, we show that we value the people who live and die in this country. Those are the people Jesus came to save. The value that God saw in them is the value we see in our country, because a country is really made up of the people God loves. Our love of our country is our love for what He loves!